Bedtime Legends
by Tailsisreal
Summary: The legend is as timeless as the art of storytelling, and the first story undoubtedly was spoken in the beginning of time to a child before bed. In Mobius, as in our world, this tradition carries on as a legend is passed down for generations. oneshot


OK, so I got the itch to do something besides updating my other stories for a moment. So sue me. Actually, on second thought, please don't. XD Regardless, this is just a cute little fanfic oneshot that I typed up during one night for a change of pace. I'm really proud of it for the speed at which it came together and still seems such good quality, but that's for you to decide really. As far as the story itself, this is one of those oneshots where the less detailed the introduction, the better the story will be. Read, review, and make sure to let me know if the story's ending leaves you with that strange, unpleasant twinge it gave me as well.

As for a disclaimer, this story really hardly needs one. Still, to be safe, I don't own Sonic or Tails. But maybe one day... one day... O_o

Bedtime Legends

"But, Daaaaad! I'm not even sleepy yet!" the small kit protested while he furiously attempted to squirm free of the much larger vulpine's grip as he was lifted into the air and away from his scattered toys all over the family's living room.

"Sorry, little pup, but bedtime is bedtime. I bet you're a lot more exhausted than you might think," the older male fox calmly answered back, expertly keeping hold of the wiggling fox under one arm in a method only years of experience could master.

"Nuh Uhh! I'm not tired at all! As a matter of fact, I think I could stay up… Yaaawwn… all night," the determined cub retorted, not seeming to understand that his enormous yawn in the middle of his last protest had all but solidified the case against his claims already.

The larger male fox simply chuckled to himself at the comical situation as he opened the door to the small kit's bedroom and navigated the dangerous obstacle course of randomly distributed toys along the floor to the bed at the far end of the room. "I think your body is telling us otherwise, Sir Yawns-a-lot," the father again chuckled while sitting the fox cub on the surface of his child-sized bed.

Reality then sank in to the small kit as he realized just then that he was caught. His dad had a good point there, and he was already in his bed, too… "Well, maybe I'm just a little sleepy…" the kit admitted as he realized the truth and that further resistance was pointless anyways.

"That's what I thought," the vulpine father agreed with a small grin he always got during moments like this. "Now, snuggle up under those covers and let me tuck you in, you little rascal," the father playfully ordered as he observed his son quickly obey, the tiny, furry body sliding itself under the well made sheets as the tips of two small tails poked themselves barely out of the sheets touching the wall while the fox cub lay on his side to face his father. True to his promise, the larger kitsune then leaned over the cub's bed and reached to tuck the covers in near the far side of the bed where the kit's tails now laid, but he stopped in mid-stretch as a young voice from the bed interrupted him briefly.

"Wait, Daddy! Don't I get a bedtime story first?" the young fox inquired in a voice filled with expectation and excitement.

Such a request made in that tone combined with the obedient little fox's cute expression when the father looked down at the kit's face could hardly ever be denied. A weakness all loving parents seemed to have, but only enough this time to produce a short sigh from the older fox in acquiescence. "Yes, I believe so. Any suggestions?" the father gave in while relocating now into a small chair he pulled up from the corner to sit at his son's bedside.

"I want one with ninjas and soldiers and giant explosions that are bigger than the whole world!" the little kit eagerly replied as his excited eyes danced and sparkled wildly while the cub's imagination rapidly thought up the most amazing bedtime story ever for his father to tell. Had the kit not been partially restrained by the covers already on top of him, the cub no doubt would also have been jumping up and down on his bed right now as well.

"Ninjas, soldiers, AND explosions? I don't know… It sounds like a little bit overdoing it; don't you think?" the mildly amused father tried to convince the small cub to request a slightly more conventional tale.

"Well…" the smaller kit thought over his impulsive ideas spawned from the unrestrained imagination of a child and conceded that his father was indeed right about that. After all, if there was ever an explosion the size of the planet, wouldn't that destroy everything and kill everyone in the story? And what kind of happy ending would that be? "OK, I guess so. But I don't know what story I want now," the cub informed his father as his mind came down from its overactive state only to find no new ideas where forming for an alternate story now.

The older kitsune again chuckled for a moment before resolving to assist the younger fox in his dilemma. "Then how about I just pick one? Maybe I can tell you the Legend of the First Kitsune? But… Nah, you wouldn't like it. It would be way too boring what with all the robots and fighting and stuff…" the clever father verbally baited the hook for the kit's imagination to seize, and it came as no surprise when the smaller fox fell for the ruse in an instant.

"No! Wait, Daddy! I won't think it's boring; I promise! Please tell me the story! Pleeeaase?!" the once again eager cub pleaded to get his father to tell the legend now that it sounded so interesting.

"No, no… Trust me, you wouldn't like it. I'm sorry I ever brought it up, really. How about something else like 'the Three Little Chao's'?" the father faked his objection for the sake of playing with the kit's imagination for a bit in fun.

"NO! Please, Daddy! **Pleeeaase** tell me?!" the little kit now begged as he moved to free himself from his covers in order to sit up in protest.

This action was stunted, however, by the intervention of the now laughing father's paw on his son's shoulder to keep the kit in his bed. "Ha ha ha! OK, OK, son. I'll tell you the story then: the Legend of the First Kitsune."

Before he could get started, however, another curious interruption came from the bed beside the storyteller. "Wait, daddy, what's a kitsune?" the little voice asked as the word didn't quite ring any bells for the younger fox.

"A kitsune? Well, you're one, and so am I and your mother," the cub's father was quick to explain as he saw the information as vital to the younger cub at some point in the future. "Basically, a kitsune is any fox that has more than one tail. It's a genetic trait that only certain families have which passes on from parents to their children for generations," the father gave a more than adequate response to the question, knowing that his bright son would likely understand most of what he was telling him anyways.

"Oh, OK. But, what's a legend, too?" the curious kit asked yet another question before the story had even begun.

"A legend is a story about something that supposedly happened a long time ago and usually is all about some amazing hero they say existed and did all these amazing things back then, too," the cub's father answered quickly. "You'll see what I mean when the story's over. So, are you ready now?" he gave the kit one last chance to ask any more questions before he began.

The fox cub made no audible reply but simply nodded in assent while laying his head back down against his pillow with eyes and ears wide open in anticipation of the story.

"OK then. This story is all about the legendary first kitsune, the father of our entire race and family. Like you and me, he was also born with not one, but two tails. Now, today that isn't seen as a bad thing at all. As a matter of fact, foxes with more than one tail are actually sometimes treated better now than foxes with only one tail. However, there was once a time when that wasn't true and having two tails was actually something a little fox would get picked on for. The first kitsune was born way back then, and that meant his life wasn't very happy because he was always getting picked on every day because of his two tails," the older fox began the first part of the traditional story all kitsunes today were told by their parents like he was doing right now.

"That doesn't sound nice. Why would people pick on him for having two tails?" the confused kit asked in response as his youth led to an innocence to such feelings as prejudice just yet.

"Because he was different than all the other foxes and creatures. Being born with two tails made him a freak back then, and people loved to be mean to him because of it. But that wasn't the worst part," the kit's father paused for effect, not too surprised that this brief pause led to another interruption from the intrigued young cub.

"What could be worse than being picked on all the time?" the kit asked, not even being able to understand just how bad that would feel on its own, let alone if something worse was also happening to this person as well.

"Well, when this fox was still really little like you are, both of his parents died which left him all alone," the cub's father continued. "He had to live on his own even though everyone still hated him and always stole or broke everything that he had. He spent years as just a kid wandering streets alone and trying to make random useful gadgets from junk in order to sell for food."

"This is a really sad story, Daddy," the young cub broke in once more as the extremely gloomy tale began to wear on the cub who customarily wanted stories for their excitement and happier moments rather than to feel sad. "Does it ever get any better?" the kit asked in annoyance while wondering if his dad had lied to him about all the cool parts like the robots and fighting he promised.

"Not for a long time, no. But one day, something did happen to the poor, small cub that turned it all around. He met someone that happened to find him hiding in the woods from some bullies and said he wanted to be friends with the fox. This person was supposedly a famous blue hedgehog that could run faster than anything in the world, and the little fox decided to live with him since he didn't have a home to live in anyways. The two became great friends until they finally called themselves brothers even though they weren't, and the blue hedgehog took care of the little fox so he wasn't hurt or picked on as much," the storyteller paused again, causing his young listener to worry that the story had ended already.

"Wait, that's it? That's the whole story?" the now unimpressed cub objected as he mentally reminded himself never to ask for this particular bedtime story ever again.

The father almost chuckled again at the impatient cub's frequent interruptions. "If you keep asking me something every time I have to stop and breathe, then yes, this will be the end of the story. But, the real story is a lot longer if you don't interrupt so much so I can actually tell it," the mildly annoyed storyteller slightly reprimanded the impetuous kit.

"OK, I'll be quiet then, Daddy," the little fox immediately promised as he pursed his lips together in a sign that he wasn't going to make a peep anymore without permission while the cub laid his head back down on his pillow to listen.

"Much better. Now, where were we… Oh yes, the young kitsune and the hedgehog," the kit's father got his mind back on the story he had been telling before the latest interruption. "Well, it turns out that not only where those two good brothers, but they also had something else in common as well. They were both heroes with special powers, too. The smaller fox with his two tails could actually spin them around over his head fast enough to fly in the air, and the blue hedgehog's speed was so quick he could run right up the side of a skyscraper and back down the other side in the blink of an eye."

"No way! That's not possible, Daddy… Is it?" the kit couldn't help but interrupt again regardless of his promise at the ridiculous claims his father was now telling him.

"According to legend it is," the storyteller quickly answered in a sincere tone while getting back to the tale once more. "However, things weren't always perfect for the fox and hedgehog. They say that back then another person existed, an evil and super-smart human who was constantly trying to take over the world with his robot armies. But, every time his robots would attack a town or city to take it over for his own empire, that blue hedgehog and his partner with two tails would stop him by destroying all his robots."

Now the young cub in the bed seemed a lot more interested as his sparkling blue eyes danced slightly in excitement. Finally, he had gotten to the part that the little kit had been waiting for, and the cub didn't make a sound to intrude this time unless his father would then stop telling the story just at the best part now.

Smiling to himself as he understood with one glance what the young cub was thinking, his father continued on with the recital. "Now, this evil human was furious that he could never beat the hedgehog and fox, so he kept making bigger and meaner and more dangerous robots to send out against them. But, every time the hedgehog and his kitsune brother would destroy the robot and save the day. Finally, the evil genius decided to do something even more dangerous, and he built a giant flying airship the size of a city that was filled with guns and bullets and killer robots to wipe out the two once and for all."

"Sounds scary," the kit observed as the idea of a huge flying battleship in the air filled with guns made him want to check out his nearby window just to make sure one wasn't already out there.

"Oh, it was scary," his father simply continued without noting the young cub's momentary fear. "And when the hedgehog and fox tried to stop it, they found out that it was too high for either of them to reach. They tried and tried to stop him, but every time they fought that airship they just couldn't reach it. And every time they failed, more and more people got captured and lost their homes to the evil man. So finally, the two tailed fox came up with an idea. Since he was almost just as smart as the evil genius himself, he built an airplane too. The fox didn't make a big one, though, just a small plane with a couple guns to go fast and out-fly the evil genius's giant airship and its huge guns. The next time the evil genius attacked, the fox flew the small airplane into battle with the hedgehog standing on the wings and together they destroyed the evil man's giant airship and saved all the people again."

"Wow! That sounds cool! Maybe I can learn to fly a plane someday too, Daddy?" the excited kit announced while once again having a hard time allowing his body to stay in bed with the urge to bounce up and down again evident in the eager cub's eyes.

"Perhaps, but wouldn't you like to hear the rest of the story first, though?" his father quickly answered to douse the overly excited cub's spike of energy before it led to the younger fox getting too rambunctious.

A simple, quick nod from the kit in his bed told his father that he would behave and the story yet again recommenced for the thousandth time. "OK then, Mr. Hyperactive Pilot. Now, after beating his first airship, the evil man kept making even bigger and more dangerous airships and robots, but the two tailed fox in his small plane with the blue hedgehog's help just kept on destroying them all until finally, in one huge battle that everyone all around Mobius could see since it happened in outer space, they finally defeated the evil genius for good and ended his reign of terror over the planet. But, it came at a price…" the storyteller paused just then in order for the tension to build up in the young kit who already lifted his head from his pillow in anticipation.

"What? What happened, Daddy?" the young cub finally spoke when he had waited several agonizing seconds with no response to the tempting cliffhanger.

His father just smiled at the kit's eager listening and decided to let him off the hook as he finished the climax of the story without further delay. "Well, they say that after the fox and hedgehog defeated the evil genius for the last time, the evil man sent his destroyed robot to fall on Mobius in the middle of the biggest city to kill everyone there in one last attempt for revenge. However, the fox wouldn't let this happen and used his own plane to destroy the rest of the broken robot in a huge explosion. Later, some people were able to find the blue hedgehog still alive but badly hurt near the two's home, but no one ever found the fox with two tails."

"You mean… he died?" the up until now excited cub in the bed next to his father spoke softly as the death of the story's main character left the kit even more saddened then before now.

"Of course not, silly! It wouldn't be much of a legend if the hero dies, now, would it?" his father quickly responded back playfully as he gave the cub in his bed a short tickle through his covers, just enough to get the little fox to giggle and writhe slightly before it ended. "No, actually, according to the legend the two tailed fox was actually found in a piece of burnt wreckage that fell from the sky from their huge battle, and, after weeks in a hospital and even longer to fully recover, the heroic fox finally was back to his old life with his big brother, the blue hedgehog. Without the evil genius to worry about anymore, too, both of them lived happily and were celebrated as heroes all over Mobius. The two tailed fox was never picked on again, and his strange mutation actually became celebrated as a sign of greatness and a noble heart. And so, that's how the very first kitsune founded our entire race. It is said that every one of us is a descendant of that same young fox who helped to save all of Mobius, and his sign of a second tail is a gift to remind us all forever of the proud lineage we come from," the storyteller finally ended as he reached forward to tuck the now very sleepy kit's tails back into his covers for the night and pull the sheets up past his tired son's white chest to rest.

Just before he could turn around to leave the room entirely, however, a soft voice came from the cozy bed one last time. "That was a good story, Daddy. But… is any of that true?" the kit managed to keep his sleepy eyes open long enough to ask one last question.

His father only chuckled one final time as well from across the room at the kit's door before answering. "It's only a legend, son. Whether it's true or not just depends on what you believe. Now, goodnight, you little question-happy cub," he ended the conversation as he flipped off the bedroom's lights and shut the door behind him, leaving the small fox cub inside to slip off to sleep and dream about the legendary fox just like him that had saved the world. _If only to be so young to be able to believe something like that really is true…_ the kit's father envied his son's blind faith as he went off to his own room with a smile on his face that he didn't seem capable of removing even if he had tried.


End file.
